Disability and Disbelief: Vivian Edwards' Transcontinental Goat Cart Odyssey, 1907-1910, by Oliver B. Pollak, Nebraska History Magazine, History Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska, Vol 105 No. 1, Spring 2024, pp. 2-17.
Vivian Edwards loss the use of his legs when he was very young. He was born in Lansing, Iowa. He lived for a time in Plattsmouth and Omaha Nebraska and Council Bluffs, Iowa. He eventually made his home in Hastings, Nebraska. He would support himself by using Angora goats to haul him around in a cart, and peddle goods, usually postcards of himself in the cart with his goats. He ran a skating ring, and a peanut stand.
His unique way of travel would draw a crowd and he could sell postcards. This motivated his journey by goat cart to California. He married on the way west in Colorado, 1890. He would often tie up travel, and thereby announce his arrival. He would sell popcorn balls, and place paid advertisements on his buggy. Burros would carry their supplies. He eventually arrived in California where his entourage included his wife and several children. He determined to travel from San Diego to New York, which trip began in 1907. Traveling as he did, and sleep out of doors, he began to look like a transient. The officials in Manhattan New York were not pleased to see his mode of travel in the city. They encouraged him to travel to Brooklyn.
On his return trip, we assume back to Hastings, he became ill and passed away in Uniontown, PA from pneumonia. He was 54 when he passed away.
No comments:
Post a Comment